Jonathan Lekkerimäki is back on the ice, back with his teammates and, most importantly for the Vancouver Canucks, back without any restrictions.
That alone counts as a major early-September positive for a club trying to get young players moving in the right direction. Lekkerimäki took part fully in captain’s skates this week, with no day-to-day designation and no non-contact jersey slowing him down. After a summer built around recovery, he looks ready to push into training camp and start his NHL climb in earnest.
The right winger had surgery in Vail, CO, in February to repair a troublesome right shoulder. The plan was simple: shut him down for the rest of the 2025-26 season, get the procedure done early and give him enough time to recover, train and arrive at camp ready to go. So far, that blueprint has held.
“I feel good now and it’s good to be back,” the 22-year-old said after a spirited scrimmage on Friday. “It’s good to skate with the guys again.”
Lekkerimäki said the rehab came with just about a month away from activity before he shifted back into offseason training. In his view, the shoulder surgery didn’t derail his summer work.
“That’s why we did it so early,” he said. “I had a good summer.
I took like four weeks off to get the scar settled down. Then I went back to hit the legs and bike, so it was not that long.
I think it went well.”
The real test comes next, when camp battles and preseason games put that shoulder under pressure. But for now, the early signs are exactly what the Canucks wanted to see.
The opportunity in front of him is real. Vancouver is in a rebuild and looking for young players to take steps forward, which should put Lekkerimäki in a position to matter. On Friday, he skated at times with former junior teammate Liam Öhgren and centre Marco Rossi, a combination that gave him another chance to build chemistry while he gets his legs under him.
He also enters camp with a familiar face behind the bench. Manny Malhotra coached Lekkerimäki in Abbotsford for two seasons, and that stretch paid off in production: 32 regular season goals and three more in the playoffs.
“I think I have a good opportunity here - we’re a young team, but we’re young and hungry,” he said. “I’ve had him (Malhotra) for two years now so it’s great to have him up here. He’s a great coach and I’m really excited.”
Lekkerimäki’s return also comes with a change in identity on his back. He is moving from No. 23 to No. 88, a number he says he wore in Sweden. Marco Rossi wanted 23, so Lekkerimäki let it go.
“Marco wanted 23, so I gave it to him,” Lekkerimäki laughed as he explained the switch, claiming he wasn’t emotionally tied to his old number. “And I had 88 in Sweden.”
The number change means he now takes over 88 from Nils Aman, who wore it the past couple of seasons. Before Aman, the number belonged to Adam Gaudette, Nate Schmidt and Nikita Tryamkin.
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